Obscured by Clouds. The rough and ready blog of a cloud benighted biologist and amateur astronomer. Astroblog will cover my interests in astronomy, biology and Life, the Universe and Everything.

Saturday, April 26, 2014

See Venus and the crescent Moon, Morning Saturday 26 April

Morning sky on Saturday April 26 looking east as seen from Adelaide at 5:00 am ACST. Venus is near the thin crescent Moon. The inset shows the telescopic view of Venus at this time. (click to embiggen).

This Saturday morning will see the crescent Moon close to
Venus, this will be lovely to look at, and a nice subject for
photography.

Saturday morning is also a good time to see Venus in the daytime. Venus can be readily
visible during the day if you know where to look. Using the Moon as a
handy guide will help you find it.

Make sure the Sun is hidden behind
something solid
like a building or a wall when you are looking for Venus, not trees
or your hand. Exposing your eyes directly to the glare of the Sun can
be very dangerous and you could potentially lose your sight.

Look for the crescent Moon, and Venus should be visible as a bright
dot about three finger-widths to the right of the Moon (and just slightly above it). It's best to look just after Sunrise when the Sun is still
low and the sky is less bright. You may need to look carefully for a while
before Venus "pops" out at you. Sometimes locating Venus in
binoculars will help with locating it with the unaided eye.